Fall, winter and Christmas, Catalina style
Fall and winter on Catalina was pretty much non-existent. Our house had small fuel oil burning heater. It was more than adequate to heat the entire place. There was a fifty gallon barrel mounted outside that fueled the heater. One full barrel would heat our house for the entire winter. My present home requires six hundred gallons of propane to heat it for the winter season. What a difference!
This time or year also meant that most residents would be unemployed due to the end of the tourist season. It was not a major problem. Everyone expected it, even looked forward to it. They got unemployment insurance from the state. If a person really needed more income there were plenty of for cash day jobs to be had.
Halloween in rural Alabama was pretty quite. Not so on Catalina or Pebbly Beach. Instead of going trick or treating from house to house, we had a neighborhood party for all the kids. Even them mean little Monica kids were invited.
It was a great party complete with treats, pin the tail on the donkey and apple bobbing. Nearly all the boys showed up dressed like pirates. Most of the young ladies arrived looking like little red riding hood. Not a whole lot of original thinking but what the heck. The Monica kids true to form tried to trash the whole affair. Their poor sister Teresa was as always stuck with trying to control the herd.
Thanksgiving was the traditional array of those awful grade school plays with kids dressed as Pilgrims,Indians and big turkeys. You know, the ones where everyone forgets their lines or get confused and bump into each other. The actual Thanksgivings day was a rainy affair. I guess you could call it a California winter day. The wind was up and sea was running pretty high with big "white cap" waves. I brought my dog Dobe inside or at least onto the porch so he was dry and warm. He was growing into a fine "pooch".
My mom had never cooked a turkey so she opted to fix chicken and dressing instead. Probably a submission to old customs. The traditional meal in the south for this holiday was either ham or chicken and dressing.
Our neighbor, the meat counter guy at Safeway, brought mom two nice chickens. Mom in turn invited him and his two kids over for dinner. The two kids had pretty much stayed with us since mom got laid off from her housekeeping job at the hotel. As mentioned earlier Mr. White was a single parent. He offered to pay my mother to watch Ronnie and Alice but mom refused to charge him. Shorty made up for it by supplying extra food for his and our family. As a result we all enjoyed a good dinner and everyone felt at home and with friends. We were thankful for each other and all of Gods blessings. Even Dobe got a good meal out of it. I reckon thats what its all about!
Christmas in California is a little hard to "get into" if your use to the holiday in an area where the weather is more in tune with the season. Palm tree's, flowers and warm weather kinda take away from the little fat guy with his sled and eight tiny reindeer. Still the island and it's residents geared up to celebrate. A little warm weather and sunshine wasn't going to get in our way.
The merchants in Avalon didn't stock much in the line of Christmas goods. Most everyone either went to the mainland to shop or mail ordered their holiday gifts. My folks did both. This would be the first time for our family to be able to have Christmas without having to "rob Peter to pay Paul". However, old habits and ways are hard broken. My mom had ordered items from Sears and Alden's. She was from the old "buy early and hide" school. A habit suffered by those that have to save money most of the year so that Christmas doesn't kill the living budget. This year presented a different problem. For the first time, mom had enough money but the mail order places didn't have all the merchandise. She informed the "old man" that they needed to go to the mainland.
It was all about Howdy Dowdy. Even though we didn't own a television set, Howdy was big in our house. My kid brother managed to slip off every afternoon and find somewhere to watch the Howdy and Buffalo Bob show. Lowell and Jimmy Williams really loved that old puppet. Both of them had their hearts set on getting Howdy doll's for Christmas. They both were still young enough to want Teddy Bears and doll's without being teased to death about it. That silly doll was the reason for the mom and dads boat ride to the main land. Lowell and me stayed with the Walters family instead of tagging along.
My folks got back home late in the afternoon. They had left the Blue Ford parked in Avalon while they went to the main land. It was now pretty much loaded with the results of their shopping trip. Even had a Christmas tree strapped on the roof carriers.
My mom was still playing out the "Santa Claus" is coming routine. Of course Lowell and I still believed in the little feller. Except for the tree we'd have to wait.
Mama in spite of hard times had always managed to have a Christmas tree. Thinking back to how hard she worked at giving the family a feeling of home and love regardless of poverty makes me very proud to have been her son. We never had lights or store bought decorations but Irene made do and did it well.
This Christmas would have a tree with everything that had been missing in years passed. Bubble lights, Angel hair, glass ornaments and a pretty angel on top.
Christmas day finally arrived. Old Santa had managed to find us even though we had moved and didn't have a chimney. As great as it was. I can't for the life of me remember I what got that year for Christmas. Lowell got that stinking doll and my dad got a set of carpenter tools from Sears.
It was a Christmas to remember. It also made me a little homesick for my cousins in Alabama. I wondered how their Christmas had been. Charles, Hubert and Jerry were always with us at the church Christmas party for as long as I can remember. My uncle Jim would dress as Santa and hand out little gifts to each kid there. Jim didn't have a real Santa costume so he used and old red house coat and Santa mask. It worked. He'd slip into the church thru a side door and holler ho ho ho. all the small faces would just "light up".
My uncle Bill and aunt Verda always invited everyone on my dads side to their house on Christmas day. Verda really out did herself to make sure everyone had a good and happy time. Bill and her had a big "ol house" on Chickasaw hill. I loved that place. My mom had grown up there. Her father had owned the place before Bill bought it. It's still in our family even today. My cousins(Bill and Verdas son's)Boyd and Mitchell along with Lowell and I spent so many good days there I couldn't began to recount them all. I do feel that my time spent with my cousins played a part in forming my life even today. I'm thankful for that influence.
This time or year also meant that most residents would be unemployed due to the end of the tourist season. It was not a major problem. Everyone expected it, even looked forward to it. They got unemployment insurance from the state. If a person really needed more income there were plenty of for cash day jobs to be had.
Halloween in rural Alabama was pretty quite. Not so on Catalina or Pebbly Beach. Instead of going trick or treating from house to house, we had a neighborhood party for all the kids. Even them mean little Monica kids were invited.
It was a great party complete with treats, pin the tail on the donkey and apple bobbing. Nearly all the boys showed up dressed like pirates. Most of the young ladies arrived looking like little red riding hood. Not a whole lot of original thinking but what the heck. The Monica kids true to form tried to trash the whole affair. Their poor sister Teresa was as always stuck with trying to control the herd.
Thanksgiving was the traditional array of those awful grade school plays with kids dressed as Pilgrims,Indians and big turkeys. You know, the ones where everyone forgets their lines or get confused and bump into each other. The actual Thanksgivings day was a rainy affair. I guess you could call it a California winter day. The wind was up and sea was running pretty high with big "white cap" waves. I brought my dog Dobe inside or at least onto the porch so he was dry and warm. He was growing into a fine "pooch".
My mom had never cooked a turkey so she opted to fix chicken and dressing instead. Probably a submission to old customs. The traditional meal in the south for this holiday was either ham or chicken and dressing.
Our neighbor, the meat counter guy at Safeway, brought mom two nice chickens. Mom in turn invited him and his two kids over for dinner. The two kids had pretty much stayed with us since mom got laid off from her housekeeping job at the hotel. As mentioned earlier Mr. White was a single parent. He offered to pay my mother to watch Ronnie and Alice but mom refused to charge him. Shorty made up for it by supplying extra food for his and our family. As a result we all enjoyed a good dinner and everyone felt at home and with friends. We were thankful for each other and all of Gods blessings. Even Dobe got a good meal out of it. I reckon thats what its all about!
Christmas in California is a little hard to "get into" if your use to the holiday in an area where the weather is more in tune with the season. Palm tree's, flowers and warm weather kinda take away from the little fat guy with his sled and eight tiny reindeer. Still the island and it's residents geared up to celebrate. A little warm weather and sunshine wasn't going to get in our way.
The merchants in Avalon didn't stock much in the line of Christmas goods. Most everyone either went to the mainland to shop or mail ordered their holiday gifts. My folks did both. This would be the first time for our family to be able to have Christmas without having to "rob Peter to pay Paul". However, old habits and ways are hard broken. My mom had ordered items from Sears and Alden's. She was from the old "buy early and hide" school. A habit suffered by those that have to save money most of the year so that Christmas doesn't kill the living budget. This year presented a different problem. For the first time, mom had enough money but the mail order places didn't have all the merchandise. She informed the "old man" that they needed to go to the mainland.
It was all about Howdy Dowdy. Even though we didn't own a television set, Howdy was big in our house. My kid brother managed to slip off every afternoon and find somewhere to watch the Howdy and Buffalo Bob show. Lowell and Jimmy Williams really loved that old puppet. Both of them had their hearts set on getting Howdy doll's for Christmas. They both were still young enough to want Teddy Bears and doll's without being teased to death about it. That silly doll was the reason for the mom and dads boat ride to the main land. Lowell and me stayed with the Walters family instead of tagging along.
My folks got back home late in the afternoon. They had left the Blue Ford parked in Avalon while they went to the main land. It was now pretty much loaded with the results of their shopping trip. Even had a Christmas tree strapped on the roof carriers.
My mom was still playing out the "Santa Claus" is coming routine. Of course Lowell and I still believed in the little feller. Except for the tree we'd have to wait.
Mama in spite of hard times had always managed to have a Christmas tree. Thinking back to how hard she worked at giving the family a feeling of home and love regardless of poverty makes me very proud to have been her son. We never had lights or store bought decorations but Irene made do and did it well.
This Christmas would have a tree with everything that had been missing in years passed. Bubble lights, Angel hair, glass ornaments and a pretty angel on top.
Christmas day finally arrived. Old Santa had managed to find us even though we had moved and didn't have a chimney. As great as it was. I can't for the life of me remember I what got that year for Christmas. Lowell got that stinking doll and my dad got a set of carpenter tools from Sears.
It was a Christmas to remember. It also made me a little homesick for my cousins in Alabama. I wondered how their Christmas had been. Charles, Hubert and Jerry were always with us at the church Christmas party for as long as I can remember. My uncle Jim would dress as Santa and hand out little gifts to each kid there. Jim didn't have a real Santa costume so he used and old red house coat and Santa mask. It worked. He'd slip into the church thru a side door and holler ho ho ho. all the small faces would just "light up".
My uncle Bill and aunt Verda always invited everyone on my dads side to their house on Christmas day. Verda really out did herself to make sure everyone had a good and happy time. Bill and her had a big "ol house" on Chickasaw hill. I loved that place. My mom had grown up there. Her father had owned the place before Bill bought it. It's still in our family even today. My cousins(Bill and Verdas son's)Boyd and Mitchell along with Lowell and I spent so many good days there I couldn't began to recount them all. I do feel that my time spent with my cousins played a part in forming my life even today. I'm thankful for that influence.
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